Wondering

[Charles Monroe]

I have a friend who recently moved (August 1) to Cuenca. She has told me through gmail that in order to have the internet in her home she HAD to have a landline phone in her rental. She claims she was given exactly the same information for obtaining health insurance. Does this have any bearing on the truth or is it just misinformation? Seems very odd to me. Thanks, Charlie Monroe
By the way, despite the fact that it is presently 10:23AM your timing states that it is 5:22PM. Another oddity

[COUNTRY EXPERT – WENDY DECHAMBEAU]

I don’t live in Cuenca, but I’m nearly certain that residents there can get internet without a landline. I think they would only need a landline if they were getting DSL internet through the local phone company. But there should be other options for sure. Maybe someone who lives there can chime in.

I can’t see how health insurance would require a landline phone number at all. The insurance company or IESS might require that you have a phone number, but it wouldn’t need to be a landline. I know a lot of insured folks here who don’t have landlines.

I’m thinking perhaps your friend misunderstood?

And our website here is run out of Ireland, so I believe the time stamp is Ireland time. 🙂

[Charles Monroe]

Thanks!! Irish time makes sense! And you should pull a pint for yourself for totally complete answers to my questions!!

[Donna Stiteler]

HI Donna Stiteler here. Cuenca Correspondent for International Living. I live in Cuenca and do not have an Ecuadorian land line. I have excellent internet, telephone service (international calls via internet OOma or MagicJack and Skype line and a local ecuadorian cell phone for country-wide use). Because navigating the internet here can be complex because of the choices, I personally used an expat who runs a business specializing in making internet arrangements and in my area I use Puntonet fiber optics with a backup provider – Etapa or CableTV because we both work at home. There are several people in town that help expats with this. It’s the one area I recommend getting someone who speaks english and is familiar with the system to help. Hope this helps!

[Charles Monroe]

Donna – Very appreciative. I know I can always go to the Forum and see this info. And I posted the info below on the Cuenca Expats site. Perhaps you or others can reply to this as well? I like information – and informed answers!!

If one were plopped down in Cuenca, spoke no Spanish, and needed to turn on the water, electricity, internet, garbage removal, and phone how would this person go about this – and what would be the “turn-around,” time. In addition, how does one pay for these utilities and services? Do you HAVE to stand in a line once a month? Any such thing as “even pay,” where your usage payment is evened out for an entire year? Can these things be deducted from your checking account? These kinds of practical matters are things I’m not seeing in the forums and discussions. Is there some sort of Gringo Manual for this?

[Country Expert Jim Santos]

Hi Charles – I can give you some information about the question above. First, if you are renting, most of that will already be taken care of by your landlord. Utilities would be in place, and you may or may not have to pay the bills, depending on your rental arrangement.

When we first arrived in Salinas, it was pretty easy to find bi-lingual assistance for utility company visits, and general start-up help. And Cuenca has at least ten times as many expats who could help you find assistance. Facebook groups are a good way to make contact, even before you arrive.

If you open a local bank account, many banks have online payment for most of your bills. If not, you can pay in person at banks, Western Union, or the office. Some utilities like internet providers may also do automatic billing to a credit card.

Hope that helps,

Jim Santos
Ecuador Coastal Correspondent

[Charles Monroe]

It does, Jim. One thing I have heard consistently throughout my recent enquiries is that have payements automatically deducted can be quite a hassle when one changes cities or towns or even banks because the payments don’t cease and it’s nearly impossible to get your money back. One woman went 7 months (she claims) with weekly pestering of the bank before they stopped the deductions and although they stopped, she never got her money refunded. Any thoughts?

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